FELTON: Deputies seized more than 600 marijuana plants during a raid of a former auto repair shop on Highway 9 near San Lorenzo Way in Felton.
Authorities had received complaints from neighbors about activity on the property at 6660 Highway 9, said Santa Cruz County sheriff’s Sgt. Mitch Medina. Deputies investigated, obtained a search warrant and served it about 9 a.m. Thursday.
The bust yielded 600 to 800 plants. No one was there and no one was arrested at the indoor grow, which was in a leased commercial building.
“They’re still investigating as to who’s involved,” Medina said.
By noon, deputies removed hundreds of marijuana plants from the building and loaded them into a trailer. The plants were in various stages of maturity and were worth $125,000, authorities estimated.
The building is near San Lorenzo Valley High School and San Lorenzo Valley Elementary School as well as and several day care centers, deputies said. The raid comes about two months after a decision by the Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors to ban commercial cultivation of marijuana in the county.
Thursday, County Code Compliance officials inspected the building and determined it had electrical problems and code violations. The building was red-tagged, meaning fixes are required, authorities said.
Felton firefighters and state Department of Fish and Game leaders also participated in the raid.
